This distinctive object, found by a metal-detectorist near Wragby in East Lindsey, Lincolnshire, has been identified as a Roman tumbler-lock slide key. Its handle consists of a sizable, solid, copper-alloy rectangular block with banded collars at the top and bottom of the stem, and terminates in a globular projection that flares into a collared circular loop. It is surrounded by corrosion, X-rays undertaken by the University of Lincoln’s Conservation Department indicate, but the bit – which is made of iron and projects at a right angle – probably reflects its original size and form, although some of its teeth are missing.
The right-angled positioning of the bit was crucial to identifying this as a tumbler-lock slide key. Such objects differ in style and form from earlier keys like the usually T-shaped lock lift key, which could only push a bolt upwards, requiring additional cords to pull it aside and release the lock. By contrast, the slide key is closer to our modern idea of keys and locks. Its iron teeth would have been made to fit precisely with the lock, pushing the bolt open from underneath. While the teeth were still within the bolt, the key itself could then be used to slide the lock open.
What sets this key apart is its size (measuring 122.5mm in length and weighing 198.71g) and its elaborate decoration. It is likely that it was a key for a large keyhole, probably securing a substantial door.
For more information about this object, see https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/1193111 or search for LIN-5D2ADA on the Portable Antiquities Scheme database.
Text: Rebecca Preedy / Image: Portable Antiquities Scheme
